The present invention relates to a high altitude low flying platform hull. More specifically, but without limitation, the present invention relates to an aerodynamic, hydrodynamic and aerohydrodynamic containment lifting hull for a balanced on air aircraft (xe2x80x9cBalonairxe2x80x9d).
A balanced on air aircraft is a type of aircraft that can travel via surface effect and travel similarly to a conventional airplane. Travel via surface effect is a type of travel whereby a platform travels just above a surface (water, land, ice, etc.) A balanced on air aircraft is also a type of aircraft that can travel via surface effect approximately two span heights (a span is typically the maximum width of an aircraft from wingtip to wingtip) above a surface, or from within the two heights to any altitude up to a service ceiling (which will be generally higher than a conventional aircraft because of the lower wing loading.) A balanced on air aircraft differs from a seaplane or flying boat in that a balanced on air aircraft has the ability to sit in the water like a catamaran boat (a boat with two parallel hulls) with reduced heave, pitch, roll and yaw motions, and without the possibility of the outrigger floats (which are on flying boats or seaplanes) being torn off by heavy weather and high loads imposed by large waves.
A hull is typically, but without limitation, the frame or main body of a ship, vehicle or aircraft. A platform is anything that lends a solid base from which to do something. A platform can also refer to a means of transport such as a ship, an aircraft, or ground vehicle, from which weapons can be deployed. The platform hull is thus, but without limitation, one of the body parts that supports the wing/fuselage/tailplane combination when the platform is at rest.
Surface effect platforms move just above the water, ground, ice, or a combination of terrain. This makes surface effect platforms more efficient than either a water platform, like a boat or ship, or a ground platform like an automobile, a truck, or a tank. When a platform is in contact with water, the ground or terrain there is a large coefficient of friction. When a platform moves through a gas like air, the coefficient of friction is substantially reduced.
Surface effect platforms may also transport cargo and people over both land and water without unloading or reloading the passengers or cargo. This saves a tremendous amount of time, which can be very important during emergencies or during military exercises or actions.
In surface effect platforms, the air flowing into the hollow space under the hull generates a buildup of air pressure during flight near the surface. This build up of air acts in a similar manner to an air cushion on which a surface effect platform can slide.
Flying aircraft use the low pressure flow of air over the aircraft wing and the high pressure flow beneath the wing to create lift. Surface effect platforms use the high pressure flow of air beneath an airfoil to produce a cushion of air between the platform and a surface to separate the platform from the surface.
Because flying aircraft and surface effect platforms utilize different scientific and aerodynamic principles to operate, it has been difficult to find a hull that can be effectively and safely used for both flying and surface effect travel. Conventional aircraft hulls are unstable when used during surface effect or low altitude and tend to generate large drag components (a resistant force exerted in the direction opposite to the direction of motion and parallel to the relative gas or air stream). This occurs especially when approaching the speed of sound and is due to the base drag of the steps and difficulty of fairing the hull to obtain a desirable aerodynamic shape. Fairing the hull describes a process to streamline the hull of a platform, especially for reducing wind resistance or drag, and to fit one part into another part as to present a streamlined surface. The large drag components of conventional aircraft hulls do not allow a platform to travel long distances and/or at high speeds via surface effect. Furthermore, conventional surface effect hulls are unstable during high altitude flight and typically do not augment lift for take-off.
Seaplanes or flying boats, which operate from the water, typically rest on a flotation device such as a hull, pontoon, float, or air cushion system (Hovercraft type). To achieve take-off, the aircraft must obtain dynamic lift from a planing bottom, skis, hydrofoils or an air cushion system. Hulls for seaplanes and flying boats come in varied designs from single (mono) through trimaran (boat with three hulls). Floats are used on General Aviation floatplanes to allow them to land and take off from water. For higher speeds for takeoff, floats and seaplane hulls use one or more additional steps to assist in breaking the surface tension of the water and to avoid porpoising (to skip, rise and plunge repeatedly while moving across the water). Typically hulls used on seaplanes have bad spray patterns when traveling on or over the water, and provide significant performance penalties and potential hull and/or aircraft erosion. Seaplane hulls cannot safely travel over or just above ground (surface effect) because they are specifically designed for travel on water. In addition, a platform with a delta wing cannot use conventional seaplane hulls primarily because of the volumetric distribution of the seaplane hulls.
Surface effect, unlike true flight, traps air between the hull/wing/platform and the surface, and augments, on a delta wing, the lift on the top surface of the wing. High lift chambered hulls, typically cargo aircraft, have difficulty remaining in surface effect when airspeed is sufficient to generate the lift required to fly.
Thus, there is a need in the art to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull that incorporates the listed benefits without the limitations inherent in current Naval Architecture and Aviation practice.
The instant invention is directed to a high altitude low flying platform hull that satisfies the needs enumerated above and below.
The present invention is directed to a high altitude low flying platform hull that includes a laminar flow airfoil, a first side slab, a second side slab, a first fin and a second fin. The laminar flow airfoil includes a nose with a nose leading edge. The first slab side contains a first slab side leading edge and a first slab side trailing edge. The second slab side contains a second slab side leading edge and a second slab side trailing edge. Both the first slab side leading edge and the second slab side leading edge are serpentine or s-shaped. The first slab side and second slab side mate to the laminar flow airfoil and the first slab side leading edge and second slab side leading edge intersect the nose leading edge. The first fin is created by the first slab side trailing edge extending upward. The second fin is created by the second slab side trailing edge extending upward. Both fins may be contoured to assist in area ruling the platform by the use of equivalent area rule technique. The area rule concept is a concept of aircraft design based on a notion that interference drag at transonic speeds depends almost entirely on the distribution of the aircraft""s total cross-sectional area along the direction of flight. Transonic speed is typically defined as a speed at which an aircraft or other body moves relative to surrounding fluid (liquid or gas) when one or more local points on a body are moving at subsonic speed (less than the speed of sound) at the same time one or more other points on the body move at sonic (the speed of sound) or supersonic speed (greater than the speed of sound). The transonic range for a particular platform depends on its design, but may spread for some platforms between approximately Mach 0.8 and Mach 1.2. (Mach 1 is a speed equal to the speed of sound in the medium the object is traveling, Mach 0.5 is a speed equal to one-half the speed of sound in the medium, Mach 1.33 is a speed one third greater than the speed of sound in the medium.)
One of the primary advantages of the high altitude low flying platform hull is that it promotes and utilizes laminar flow when in close proximity to the surface. The first slab side and second slab side constrain debris and spray to pass under the hull rather than into it and also seal the ram air cushion between the slab sides themselves and the laminar flow airfoil, thus creating an open ended box lid. The fins provide additional directional stability while affording appropriate local area rule for transonic flight. Furthermore, the volumetric distribution of the high altitude low flying platform hull is suited for a lacent ogee delta wing on a balanced on air platform utilizing the high altitude low flying platform hull.
It is an object of the invention to provide a high altitude low flying hull for a platform that combines the role of an aircraft, a ship, and a surface effect platform. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a hull that provides stability and no noticeable adverse control effects when utilizing the platform as an aircraft, a ship, a boat, or as a surface effect platform. It is another object of the invention to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull for a platform/aircraft that can lift in water, travel at high altitudes, be a low flying aircraft, and a surface effect platform. It is also an object of this invention to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull that can be used on a platform that can operate with complete stability both as a surface effect vehicle and a high altitude aircraft.
It is another object of the invention to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull that can provide a hull that can be used for both a surface effect vehicle and a conventional aircraft.
It is also an object of the invention to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull that minimizes spray from water, minimizes impacts at high speeds, and has lower drag than equivalent systems.
It is an object of the invention to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull that creates a stable, efficient platform for flight in and out of surface effect. It is also an object of the invention to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull that is efficient for high speed long distance operation during surface effect travel, and allows high altitude flight.
It is an object of the invention to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull that allows a high lift chambered hull to remain in surface effect when airspeed is sufficient to generate the lift required to fly.
It is also an object of the present invention to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull that has capabilities to operate as a battlespace dominance platform, which supports major mission areas individually or in combination. It is also an object of the present invention to provide a high altitude low flying platform hull that has the capabilities of transporting heavy loads such as passengers, military troops, military equipment (tanks, construction equipment, and the like), cargo, and the like during both surface effect travel and high altitude flight.